of him. Hesitating, she cast a glance at the boys’ aunt. “You sure I can’t get you anything more? It’s gratis. Soup? Pie?”
“No, thank you.” She refused to look up and helped the boys arrange napkins in their laps.
No surprise there. She was probably one of those women that lived off salad and diet soda. Dominic dug into his food with almost as much gusto as the boys. It’d been several days since he’d stopped long enough to sit somewhere and let his stomach settle.
“Cissy, huh?” he mumbled out around a bite of burger before dragging a napkin across his mouth.
He noticed her eyes followed the movement and lingered on his lower lip. She wasn’t completely unaffected by him. Dominic dropped his gaze to the table to hide his satisfaction.
“Cissy,” she affirmed. “Cissy Henley.”
“I’m Kayden,” the boy garbled out around his own mouthful of food.
“And this is Jayden,” Cissy commented, nodding in the other boy’s direction.
He swallowed before taking another huge bite and offering up his own introduction. “Dominic Slade.”
“Cowboy.” A bit of food flew out of Jayden’s mouth at the declaration and Cissy quickly admonished them both not to talk with their mouths full.
Abashed, Dominic pressed his lips together and chewed, making sure his mouth was empty before asking, “Y’all from around here?”
“No” was her only response before taking a gulp of coffee.
Though Cissy seemed intent upon drinking, her long lashes lifted and she returned her attention to his mouth.
Dominic’s blood rushed as her eyes darkened. He shifted in the small confines of the booth, uncomfortably aware of the tightness of his jeans. He damned sure had been on the road too long.
Cissy lowered the cup and continued to stare. Surely she wasn’t trying to come on to him in front of the kids. Not that it’d be the first time. Lately, nothing women did surprised him.
Thankful for the silence that ensued, Dominic continued working on his meal. He was impressed by the boys’ appetites. They managed to polish off each half of their burger, every onion ring and almost an entire sundae. Only a few drops of melted ice cream remained.
Jayden flopped back with a sigh. “I’m full.”
“Me, too,” Kayden added. Their eyes were heavy and they looked as though they could nod off at any moment.
“I should hope so,” Dominic commented with a chuckle, the last third of his burger hovering above his plate between his fingertips. “Don’t know where you two possibly put it all.”
That drew a sleepy but broad smile from them both.
“We’re bottomless pits,” Jayden piped with pride, tapping his chest with his fist.
Cissy laughed and ruffled her fingers through their blond hair. The boys closed their eyes and leaned into her, soaking it up and drifting off. Dominic couldn’t help but admire her expression. Her whole face lit up, her eyes bright.
As though sensing his scrutiny, she faced him again and nibbled on the rosy curve of her bottom lip. His stomach flipped over at her shy look. She had freckles. They were scattered over the bridge of her pert nose and the apples of her cheeks. He had the strange urge to touch his tongue to them to see if they tasted as sweet as they looked.
“Dominic?” she asked, leaning forward. Her tongue curled around his name. She carefully moved her arms from the sleeping boys and slid them across the table. Her breasts pressed against the edge.
Dominic peeled his eyes from the scoop of her white tank top and cursed himself for wishing the neckline was a good bit lower. “Yeah?” he choked.
“Are you finished?” A flush of pink heat encompassed her cheeks, obscuring the freckles.
He stilled. This was it. Proposition time. He had to give her points, though. She’d put it off a lot longer than most women. And despite his cynicism, he surprised himself by being eager to play.
“Are you finished?” she repeated with a raised brow. Those beautiful blues of hers moved from his mouth to his hand.
“Yeah,” he mumbled.
She drew closer, stretching across the distance between them, and lifted her hand. His body tightened and his eyelids lowered to half-mast as he anticipated her touch on his skin.
“Great,” she chimed.
Empty air drifted between his fingers. Dominic frowned. He’d been robbed.
Cissy stuffed a good portion of what remained of his triple cheeseburger into her mouth and closed her eyes. Mustard trickled off the side of her chin and her pink tongue shot out to catch it with a low moan of pleasure.
Well, double damn. This was definitely a first.
A loud ring jarred from underneath the table. Cissy jumped, then scrambled around, producing a cell phone before quickly silencing it and shoving it back in her pocket.
“Fwanks,” she mumbled around the wad of burger. “We gotta glo.”
“But...”
Dominic blinked, struggling to get a grip on the situation when she rose from her seat and jostled the boys awake. She tugged money from her pocket, counted out a few bills and dropped them onto the table. The remnants of hot desire pumped through his veins as she bustled the boys out of the booth.
She stooped to grab a quarter from the pile still resting on the floor where the candy machine used to reside. Her eyes brushed over him, dismissing him and focusing on the exit just before she tugged the boys out the door.
Dominic shifted at the uncomfortable churn in his gut. What the hell just happened?
“You finished, Dom?”
Sheila’s perky voice grated across his nerves as he strained to make out the trio in the darkness beyond the window. Cissy leaned into the backseat of a battered Toyota and strapped the boys in with one hand. The other still held the last bit of his burger.
“Yeah,” he stated offhandedly, watching as Cissy finished settling the boys and polished off the last bite, pausing as she reached the driver’s-side door.
“Poor thing,” Sheila observed. “I got the feeling she couldn’t afford to buy herself something to eat. She made sure those boys got what they wanted, though. Cute kids but a bit rowdy.”
Frowning, Dominic examined the stiff line of Cissy’s back. She stared to her right at the long stretch of highway before turning her head to the left and peering equally as hard.
“Did she mention where they were headed?” He delivered the question through stiff lips.
He traveled light. The last thing he needed was a complication. Much less three of them.
“Nope. She wasn’t the talkative type.” Sheila pressed against his side and asked, “Anything else I can get you?”
Forced to pull his attention from the window, he drudged up a polite smile. “No, thanks.” He withdrew a hefty tip from his pocket and dropped it on the table before rising. “It was good running into you.”
“Anytime, cowboy,” she mocked with humor. “Give me a call if you get bored later.”
Dominic ducked his heated face in acknowledgment before leaving. Stepping outside, he watched the battered Toyota groan its way up the graveled drive and take a right.
Travel light. He slapped his hat against his leg then settled it back on his head with the firm reminder. He already had his hands full with returning home. He should get in his truck and go straight to the ranch. No stops. Straight there. Put in an appearance, shake his brother off his back then get on the road as planned.
Cissy’s